Fugitives in the Middle
by lizziebear87
Summary: The Wilkerson family are forced to go on the run. Based on a dream I had.
1. Prologue

Hi guys! After a long absence I am finally back with a new story. This one might be a bit confusing but that's because it's loosely based on a dream I had and deciding to stay true to dreams there is no beginning and no end. Everything that's not answered can be left to your own interpretation.

Also, to any readers who are also reading my previous fanfic When The World Came Crashing Down I just want to let you know that I haven't forgotten about it, I'm just going through extreme writers block. When I finally do post the next chapter you'll understand why. In the meantime though I would like to give you my sincere apologies for taking so long.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything that was created by the creator's of Malcolm in the Middle.

* * *

><p><span>Prologue<span>

"Hal, this is serious. How did this happen?" Lois was standing at the kitchen sink looking at the night sky through the window.

"I don't know, honey." Hal sat motionless at the table looking down at his hands. He knew his wife would be asking a lot of questions but right now he had no idea what the answers were. Frankly, it was taking everything he had to keep himself calm and not panic, something his wife was already doing.

"This is the worst situation we've ever gotten ourselves into!" Lois cried out. "I hate to say it but I don't see a way out of this." Hal looked up at her, instantly seeing the panic and stress that was etched on her face. It was a face of Lois' that he hated seeing the most.

"Now honey, don't think like that," Hal said soothingly. "This family have been in a lot of tough situations and we've always gotten through it. This one is no different." He was staring into her eyes now, her hand clamped over her mouth like it always found itself in times of stress.

They stared at each other for what felt like hours, neither daring to utter a word or move a muscle in case it would somehow make things worse. Finally Lois moved into the chair adjacent to Hal and he grasped her hands into his.

"This isn't the end," he almost whispered, gaining a hopeful nod from Lois.

"The boys are counting on us Hal. What are we going to do?"She asked fearfully. Hal looked down at his hands again before looking back up and staring intently into her eyes.

"We know that there's only one thing that we can do. We may not want to accept it but it's the only way out of this. It's the only choice we have." Hal told her.

"What is it?" Lois breathed out. Hal paused before answering dramatically.

"We have to run."

* * *

><p>Yes, I know. It's an incredibly short chapter to start you on but I have already written the next chapter (Chapter 1) so you wont have to wait too long for me to update. In the meantime thanks for reading and all your reviews will be much appreciated :)<p> 


	2. Chapter 1

Because I love you guys so much I've decided to post another chapter already yay! I know the first one was short and didn't really give you much but this one is a lot longer and may occupy you for a little longer until I can update again. Hope you enjoy it :)

Disclaimer: See Prologue.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 1<span>

"Don't worry Hal. I'll take good care of them for you." The family were standing out the front of Craig's house and even under the circumstances Craig was still in a cheerful mood. Hal didn't care though, he was just thankful for his help.

"I can't thank you enough Craig. You don't know how much this means to me." Hal grabbed Craig's shoulder and gave it a light pat.

"Aww shucks. I wasn't doing anything else anyway so it's not a problem," Craig chuckled before turning serious. "Now just so that we're clear, it's just Lois and the young one right?"

"Yes," Hal answered. "I'll be taking Reese and Malcolm with me."

"Sounds great." Hal thought he heard Craig breathe a sigh of relief but ignored it and turned to his wife.

"Hal, I know I agreed to this but I'm having second thoughts. Are you sure we shouldn't just stay together?" She asked. Hal pulled her into a hug.

"Now honey we've been over this. I don't know how dangerous this is going to get but it's safer for you and Dewey to stay with Craig. We need you both out of harm's way for this." He pulled away and Lois nodded. He gave her a reassuring smile and then turned to the three boys.

"Malcolm, Reese. Say goodbye to your brother and mother," he ordered.

"Bye Dewey." Reese said a little sadly.

"Yeah, bye Dewey," Malcolm said. "Take care of mum for us." Both boys then walked over to Lois leaving Hal to say his own goodbye to his son.

"Now, I want you boys to be good for your father," Lois started. "Do everything he says and most of all..." A sob escaped from Lois' mouth and she struggled to continue.

"I just want you to be safe," she finally got out. Lois then knelt down and pulled them both into a tight hug. Both Malcolm and Reese were startled at first but then relaxed into her shoulder and mumbled a quick "Goodbye Mum."

"Dad, why do you have to go?" Dewey asked. Hal knelt down and looked at his youngest sons face. He looked so innocent, the poor little guy probably had no idea what was going on.

"I'm sorry son but we have to. You'll understand later." When Dewey didn't respond Hal continued. "Dewey, I'm gonna need you to do something important for me."

"What's that?" Dewey asked, puzzled.

"I'm gonna need you to be brave. Brave for you, brave for your mother, brave for this family. Do you think you can do that for me?" Hal asked. There was a short pause while Dewey thought about it.

"Sure Dad," Dewey said with a smile.

"That's my boy," Hal smiled proudly. "Goodbye son." Hal pulled him into a tight embrace.

"Hal, you probably should get going now," Craig interrupted. Hal reluctantly pulled away from Dewey.

"Yes, you're right," he replied. "Come on boys."

Malcolm and Reese gingerly left their mother's side and followed their father back to the car. Before getting in they briefly looked back at Lois and Dewey, knowing that this might be the last time they ever see each other. Lois, Dewey and Craig watched as half of the Wilkerson family drove away and out of their sight.

Detective Joseph Redford and a group of flashing police cars stood outside the newly vacated Wilkerson household. Around him, lower ranked police officers moved in every direction but he could only stand in the one spot. He was too outraged to do anything else because that wretched family had escaped! He stroked his black moustache in an attempt to calm himself down.

"Detective," a voice called from behind him, bringing him back to reality.

"Yes officer," he said impatiently.

"As you know, the whole squad have been searching every inch of the house-"

"Yeah yeah. Get to the point!" Redford interrupted angrily.

"Well...ah...sir we haven't found any leads as to where they may be headed but we can confirm that they left not 2 hours ago."

"How do you confirm that?" Redford didn't even bother trying to hide the irritation in his voice.

"One of the neighbours told us sir," the officer answered matter of factly.

"Hmm, let's just hope this nosy neighbour is right then," he said with a hint of sarcasm before walking away from the intimidated officer.

"Jacobs!" he barked. "Have you run their plates yet?" The officer named Jacobs poked his head out of the open door of the car he was seated in.

"Yes sir. The system is running it through now."

"Well make it go faster," he yelled back. "I don't know about you but I certainly don't have all night to wait!"

"Yes sir," Jacobs replied back, clearly irritated.

"Honestly, sometimes I think I'm in charge of a group of school kids!" Redford muttered to no one in particular before going back to supervising the search.

"Sir!" Jacobs called out from the car. "We've got 'em!"

"What?" Redford called back angrily.

"I said we've found them!"

"Well it's about time," the detective let out impatiently while making his way over to Jacobs car.

"A car matching the description and registration as the vehicle in question has just been spotted on highway 9," Jacobs informed him.

"Excellent," Redford exclaimed gruffly. "Highway 9. There's only one way in and one way out. We've got you now!"

"Sir, orders," Jacobs was a little weirded out by his detective's lapse in concentration.

"Ah, gather everyone together and let's get going. I'm not going to let them escape a second time!"

Hal, Reese and Malcolm were standing near a lake where just minutes ago they had watched as their car had floated, sunk, and then gradually disappeared into the depths of the murky water. They had stood in silence ever since. Hal breathed in deeply before breaking breaking the silence.

"Come on boys. We need to keep going." The three of them slowly trudged their way through the thick mud and bushes back onto the open road.

"Where are we going?" Reese asked.

"I don't know Reese," Hall answered. "I was hoping I'd have an idea by now but nothing's come to me." Feeling defeated, they continued walking. Suddenly Malcolm stopped.

"Wait a minute!" he exclaimed, causing his father and brother to turn around and stare at him. "This is highway 9, right? There should be an old abandoned factory along here somewhere. We could stay there!" Hal and Reese stared at him for a moment longer while they processed this.

"Alright then," Hal finally responded. "We don't have anywhere else to go so we might as well." With spirits a little lifted they continued walking, keeping an eye out for the abandoned factory. Not much was said though, they were all to focused on their movements with the huffing and puffing that escaped their lungs not making their travels any easier. Finally, after about half an hour they found it.

"Well Malcolm. You were right," Reese managed to say between gulps of air.

"Of course I was right. I'm a genius remember?" Malcolm was equally out of breath. Hal was about to say something but he closed his mouth abruptly when he heard them.

"Sirens," Malcolm voiced. They were still 30 metres away from the factory entrance and the sirens were getting closer and louder.

"Come on boys. Run!" Hal screamed. The last 30 metres of their journey seemed like an eternity. Not only had trees overgrown over the driveway but some of their branches had completely fallen off onto it and with virtually no light to guide them they kept tripping over. From his spot behind the boys the boys Hal helplessly raced after them, partly feeling old and slow but mostly because he didn't want his sons falling behind him.

Reese was the first to reach the front door. Unfortunately, the glass door was locked.

"Who would lock an abandoned building!" he cried out of fear and panic.

"Reese, smash the glass!" he heard Malcolm call from behind him. Not wasting a second more he scrunched his right hand into a fist and punched it through. Luckily for him the glass wasn't strong and his fist flew through it with ease.

"I meant with a rock you idiot!" Malcolm exclaimed as he reached Reese's side. Quickly Malcolm pulled his brothers hand out of the hole in the glass and put his own through it to unlock the door. As Hal got closer to the two they were pulling the door open and holding it ajar for him.

"Go boys, don't worry about me!" he watched them disappear inside. 3 more strides and Hal had finally reached the door. Letting out a sigh of relief he opened the door and then stared at it in horror. In the reflection were the unmistakable flashing lights of a police car with more following. They had all just reached the driveway and would be at the door any second! Making an executive decision Hal bolted through the door and ran after the boys, finding them not too far away climbing a staircase.

"Dad, come on!" Reese called out.

"No boys. I can't." Hal's voice was calm.

"What!" Malcolm and Reese both screamed.

"They saw me. But they didn't see you. You have to go on without me."

"No!"

"Quick! You still have time to go out the back door. I'll stall them for you."

"Dad, no," Malcolm said quietly.

"It's okay son. It's up to you two now. You have to save the family. We're counting on you." Hal gave them an encouraging smile before casually walking back the way he came.

The boys waited, the only thing they could hear were the police sirens. That is until they heard gun shots.

* * *

><p>What did you think guys? I have to say that my favourite line is "I meant with a rock you idiot!" lol. Well hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it and you are still quite welcome to review anytime you like. Thanks for reading and I will update as soon as I can :)<p> 


	3. Chapter 2

Hey guys, here's chapter 2 for you :) sorry it took so long, I've been busy with my new job but I finally had a day off today and was able to catch up on some writing. Hope you like the chapter :)

Disclaimer: I don't own anything that was created by the creators of Malcolm in the Middle.

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 2<span>

The sirens were still blaring. Shots were still firing. For Malcolm and Reese though, time seemed to stand still. Neither of them had moved from where they were standing when they saw their father walk away from them. Panic and fear gripped them as they struggled to accept their father's fate. Malcolm was the first to snap out of it.

"Come on," he grabbed at his brothers shirt. "We have to go."

"Huh?" Reese seemed to be in a daze.

"Remember what Dad said? The back door!" Malcolm pleaded to Reese to remember.

"Oh yeah." Regaining the use of his muscles Reese sprung into action and both boys ran to the back door to make their escape. Once outside, a cool breeze hit their faces as they ran through the brush land. Tree branches scratched their arms and faces and every now and then they would trip over something and stumble but they kept on running. Suddenly Malcolm cried out.

"Stop!" Reese, who was a little ahead of his brother, stopped in his tracks and spun around.

"What?" he inquired as he lent against a tree.

"I can't hear the sirens anymore," puffed Malcolm. Reese paused and listened.

"I can't either," he finally said. "Do you think they're gone?"

"Maybe, but we still have to be careful," Malcolm answered. "I guess we can stop running for now." Reese sighed with relief as he wiped his brow.

"Reese!" Malcolm exclaimed. "Your hand is bleeding! You must have cut it when you punched through the glass!" Reese stared at it dumbly while Malcolm ripped off a bit of his brother's shirt and wrapped the material around Reese's injured hand.

"Okay," Malcolm said when he was finished. "Let's get out of here before they figure out where we are." Silence fell upon the boys as they concentrated on their movements and it wasn't until they had reached the main road again that Reese spoke up.

"Do you know where we're going?"

"Not a clue," Malcolm answered. "But we have to find somewhere soon or we'll end up freezing to death." Reese nodded. The cool night air had already given them both the sniffles and Malcolm was tired of wiping his nose with his sleeve.

"Hey, aren't the Jackson's away?" Reese piped up.

"Yeah, and their house isn't too far from here," Malcolm caught on, grinning at his brother.

"Do you think we should go there then?" Reese asked.

"Anything to get out of this cold breeze," Malcolm said. The boys then followed the highway in the direction of the residential area, new purpose and motivation helped restore the energy they had lost throughout the night.

The streets were dark, so dark that not even the streetlights were of much help against the eternal blackness of the night. Even though they were both breathing hard they tried to be as quiet and stealthy as possible so as not to wake up the sleeping neighbourhood. Just as Malcolm felt like he was about to collapse from exhaustion Reese stopped in front of a house.

"Is this the house?" he breathed to Reese.

"Yep," was all Reese could manage. Not wasting another second Malcolm walked up to the front door and turned the handle. Not surprisingly, it was locked.

"The back door," he whispered to Reese who nodded back. On the left side of the house was an old wooden gate which creaked when the boys opened and closed it behind them. Quickly they both walked down the side of the house but close to the end Reese spotted a window that was open far enough for them both to squeeze through. Helping each other to their feet, they both began to relax and Malcolm surveyed the room they were in. It was a largish room that seemed to be a TV room, minus the TV. Actually, the only piece of furniture that was in the room was a new couch.

"They must be redecorating," joked Malcolm though neither of them laughed. "You hungry? I'm gonna go raid the fridge."

"Not really," Reese murmured. Malcolm looked at his brother and for the first time noticed how pale and tired his face looked. Malcolm assumed that he himself probably didn't look any better.

"Alright, you better go wash your hand in case there's still glass in it. I'll go find a bandage."

"Okay." Reese disappeared out of the room and Malcolm did the same, heading in the direction of the kitchen. Once he'd found it he grabbed and then ate anything that was edible before focussing his attention on finding the medicine cabinet. The small room next to the kitchen was the laundry and Malcolm was relieved to see a first aid kit sitting on the dryer. The Jackson's must have meant to take it with them but accidently left it behind. Grabbing everything he needed plus a quilt Malcolm headed back to the poorly decorated "TV room" at the other end of the house. Reese had beaten him back though and Malcolm found him lying on the couch, seemingly asleep.

"Hey," Malcolm whispered. Reese opened his eyes.

"Oh, I found this," Reese sat up and revealed a flashlight that he had been holding. Malcolm took it from him and turned it on. After being in darkness for so long the light seemed unnaturally bright.

"Okay, hold out your hand," Malcolm ordered as he shone the flashlight in Reese's direction. Reese complied silently and Malcolm wrapped up his hand in a clean bandage. When he was finished he used the new found light to his advantage and examined the couch Reese was sitting on.

"You know, I think this might be a sofa bed."

"Really?" Reese wasn't really interested.

"Yeah, get up and help me pull it out." Reese groaned but did what he was told and soon they were both lying on the bed with the quilt protecting them from the cold. Just as Malcolm thought his brother had dozed off, his brother spoke.

"I wonder what happened to Dad," he said so softly it was almost a whisper. Malcolm wasn't sure how to answer. Just thinking about his father was so painful it felt like a knife was stabbing him in the heart. Of course he didn't know what had really happened but how could he have hope that their father was still alright after hearing all of those gunshots being fired? Back at the abandoned factory Malcolm had noticed that Hal had known exactly what he was doing, and he knew what was going to happen next. The look on his face had said it all. Giving himself up was a sacrifice he needed to make to show his devotion to his family, no matter what the price of his actions were. Hal Wilkerson had never expected to make it through the ambush but his last act of pure selflessness had left the family with hope remaining. The family could still be saved.

"We can't think about that Reese," Malcolm found his voice. "Now get some sleep." When Malcolm received no response he was left to wonder if his brother had already fallen asleep.

Detective Redford sat in his large office, his legs stretched out on his desk and a tooth pick in his mouth, pondering the events of the night before. Even though the case at hand had taken a turn for the worse, he had lost one of his officers, he had still had a good night. He was able to go home and he was able to get a good 8 hours of sleep, unlike all of the officers in his crew. Yes, while he was relaxing at home and dreaming of a chorus line of vacuum cleaners everyone else on the case had been ordered to work all night. Orders that he had given them. The thought of it made him chuckle evilly. In fact, when he had walked in at 6.30 am he had had to stifle a bout of laughter as he watched his tired officers rushing around the place with files in hand or taking never ending phone calls. Life was certainly good for Detective Joseph Redford but it would have been better had he managed to find that certain family. He was broken from his thoughts when there was a knock on the door.

"Detective," the officer named Bannet barged in. "I have something."

"Yes, go on," Redford taunted.

"At precisely 11.51 pm last night there was a 911 call from an elderly woman named Carol reporting a break in at the house across the road from her. I believe that the owners of the house go by the name of Jackson and they have been confirmed as being away for the holidays."

"So," Redford bit down on his tooth pick in annoyance.

"She described the intruders as two teens who match the description of the two teens in our fugitive family." Redford laughed maniacally.

"Gather the men. Let's head out!"

"No, I can't." Malcolm was reluctant.

"Sure you can," she said brightly.

"No, what if I do it wrong?"

"Malcolm, it's easy. All you have to do is lean forward." She was becoming impatient.

"Alright, here goes then," he closed his eyes and leaned towards her.

"Ugh, what's that noise?" she asked, sounding annoyed.

"What noise?" Malcolm's eyes were still closed.

"Those sirens!" Malcolm's eyes jolted open. Instead of seeing the beautiful new girl at school though he saw an unrecognisable room. When the sirens blared through his brain he suddenly remembered everything that happened the previous night. Now seeing the Jackson's house in the light of day made it easier to see that the room next to where he and Reese were sleeping had huge windows. Huge windows that just happened to overlook the front yard which was now occupied by about a dozen police cars. All the police had to do was look through those windows and at the end of the looking glass would be the two teens they had been searching all night for. Malcolm looked over at Reese in panic. Reese was just beginning to wake up, signs of fatigue told Malcolm that he would rather keep sleeping.

"Reese, they've found us! Quick, get up and run!" Malcolm almost shouted. He jumped off the sofa and was nearly out of the room when he noticed that Reese wasn't with him.

"Reese!" Malcolm cried out while spinning around. Reese was still on the sofa, though he was now sitting up on the edge. His head was bowed, making it look like he was thinking.

"What are you doing?" Malcolm almost squealed. Reese looked up at him.

"I have to go," he said calmly.

"What?" Fear gripped Malcolm as he realized what Reese meant. "You mean...out there?" Malcolm pointed towards the front yard. Reese could only nod his head.

"No, I won't let you," Malcolm shook his head vigorously.

"It's okay Malcolm. We both know that you're the only one who can save the family. This is what I have to do." Before Malcolm could string two words together in protest Reese had left the room, the slam of the front door signalling his departure from the house. Malcolm stood frozen to the spot as the sound of firing gunshots started. Looking through the front windows, he struggled to keep the tears from falling when he saw his brother collapse to the ground.

* * *

><p>So what did you think? In all honesty I think it could have been written a bit better but it was the best I could come up with and in the end it did go the way I had planned. Next chapter will be the last one and I should hopefully get that one up very soon but in the meantime reviews will be much appreciated :) Thanks for reading!<p> 


End file.
